Alexis Flanders

This evaluation grew out of curiosity sparked in another course. While reading research about how students picture mathematicians and scientists, I wondered how my own third graders might respond to similar prompts. Instead of simply wondering, I tried it.

I designed a small classroom activity where students listened to completely gender-neutral descriptions of four professions: scientist, doctor, math professor, and nurse. After each story, students drew the professional they imagined. The drawings became a simple but powerful dataset revealing how students mentally represent different careers.

To evaluate this intervention, I used Brinkerhoff’s Success Case Method, which focuses on examining the strongest successes and clearest failures of an intervention to understand what is actually working. Rather than averaging results, this model highlights where meaningful change occurred and where barriers remained.

The visual evaluation below walks through the intervention, identifies success and non-success cases, and analyzes the patterns that emerged. In short, the activity disrupted some stereotypes but had little effect on other deeply rooted stereotypes.

I also experimented with using AI tools to help organize this evaluation. By uploading my sources and data into NotebookLM, I was able to generate and refine ideas for structuring the visual analysis. Used thoughtfully, tools like this can support the creative process without replacing the thinking behind it.

Sometimes the most interesting discoveries in education happen when curiosity turns into action. This small classroom experiment reminded me that even simple activities can reveal powerful insights about the ideas students are already carrying with them.

Resources

Deller, J. (2021, November 30). Brinkerhoff model 101: Methodology and goals. Kodo Survey. https://kodosurvey.com/blog/brinkerhoff-model-101-methodology-and-goals

Kim, J., Hornburg, C. B., Grose, G. E., Levinson, T. G., & Fazio, L. K. (2025). Picturing mathematicians: Examining how gender and math anxiety relate to students’ representations of mathematicians in late elementary and middle school. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 258, Article 106290. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2025.106290